This Lakeside Cabin Has All the Old-School Charm of Summer Camp
Grab a beer from the vintage 7UP cooler, then gather ’round the campfire at this vintage-filled Missouri lake house.
At the end of an old farm road in southwest Missouri, Lakeshore Lodge drips with nostalgia like an ice-cream cone in peak summer heat. There’s the red wall-mount telephone with its curly vinyl cord and a stash of faded board games tucked inside an old toolbox. Even its soundtrack is decidedly throwback: When Katie and Andy Barnes (and kids Squire, 13, and Harper, 11) pull up in the drive after making the four-hour journey from their home in northern Missouri, Katie’s known to cue up “In the Summertime,” an upbeat 1970s hit by Mungo Jerry.
Fittingly enough, the song came out right around the time the 2,200-square-foot property was built. “The house had served as a vacation home for a family from Kansas,” says Katie. “It was in pristine condition—that is, pristine 1970s condition—with dark paneling, orange shag carpet, and yellow appliances. We wanted to maintain the vintage lake feel, but to get the look we wanted, we needed to renovate.”
After remodeling homes in and around their community for more than a decade, Katie and Andy were up to the task, which included adding a metal roof, a screened-in porch, and various old-meets-new amenities. Katie then layered in vintage finds—picnic baskets, badminton racquets, plaid thermoses—that evoke the old-school charm of summer camp. Still, despite the heavy hits of nostalgia, weekends at the lake aren’t about looking back. “The stargazing is incredible out here,” says Katie. “We spend a lot of time looking up.”
Keep reading to see how Katie created that vintage lake feel.
Rachel Barrett is the Editor-in-Chief of Country Living. She can't pass up a vintage seascape, drives an '89 Woody Wagoneer (that is, when it'll start), and hopes to buy you a lemonade at a future Country Living Fair.
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